VanGogh™ employs proprietary self-extracting technology to remove
unwanted DNA introduced into the cellular genome, such as DNA encoding
antibiotic resistance or fluorescent proteins used in genetic
engineering. Unlike competing technologies, VanGogh™ exhibits >90%
efficiency, eliminates unexcised cells, and does not require additional
transfection or transduction of cells with a recombinase or transposase.
Rodin™ extends VanGogh™ linking induced excision of unwanted DNA to the
simultaneous activation and/or inactivation of up to four different
genes. Rodin™ technology can be used to produce cells in which gene
expression and cell function can be switched on/off temporally on-demand
both in vitro and in vivo. These technologies can be
combined with Progenitor’s Receiver Cell technology for rapid parallel
development of multiple lines of footprint-free, genetically identical
cells expressing different genes of interest from safe harbor sites.
These technologies are expected to increase efficiency and scalability
of industrial workflows for producing engineered cell therapies.

CSO Tim Graham states, “Our technologies enable more efficient and
reliable workflows, and produce safer cells. Using these technologies
provides partners with unprecedented cell design capabilities, including
the ability to switch from expressing one CAR to another in vivo,
excisable selection cassettes, and multiple layers of control over
differentiation and proliferation. Progenitor’s technologies will be
pivotal in implementing next-generation ‘off-the-shelf’ cellular
immunotherapies. Current allogeneic CAR-T therapies focus on delivering
a single CAR molecule into a mix of primary cells. In contrast, future
‘off-the-shelf’ therapies will employ large-scale production of
renewable cells, and will require optimization of cells with a more
comprehensive approach taken to screening CAR molecules, alone or in
combination with other factors like co-activators, cytokines, and
suicide genes. The current approach of ‘one cell line and one receptor
at a time’ won’t cut it in this new arena. Progenitor’s technologies
provide parallel development that accelerates production/testing of
‘off-the-shelf’ cellular therapies, and is scalable for industrial
production of the final products.”